Readings for Sunday October 17, 2010

Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time


Summary of the Gospel from YM Central

You’ve heard the expression, ‘when the going gets tough, the tough get going’. Would this describe your faith in Christ? Our Gospel this Sunday is a challenge to be consistent and determined in our relationship with Jesus. Jesus uses the parable of the dishonest judge to show us the importance of having persistent faith and prayer. The judge is called ‘dishonest’ because he fears neither God nor man – He is not motivated by justice, but by his personal convenience. In one of his cases, he is faced with an unrelenting and (to him an) annoying widow who wants the judge to deliver a decision in her favor. Her nagging drives the judge to the point of giving her the favor of the verdict - all so he doesn’t have to deal with her anymore. Jesus makes the point that if a dishonest judge will listen to persistent arguments, God will listen to our constant prayers to
Him. Many times we want to fall away from our faith when the going gets tough, yet God desires us to love Him above all things at all times. God always hears us, He knows our deepest desires and sufferings, and He longs to heal us and bring good to our lives. What makes it difficult for us is that we expect God to be like our local ‘Burger King’: We want to have it our way, and we want it now. This assumes that we know what is best for ourselves, which is rarely the case. God knows what is best for us and always gives us what we need, not just to survive today, but ultimately He gives us the grace, day in and day out, to get to heaven when we die. We are often focused on the little picture (what do I need to get done today?), while God is focused on both the little and big (what do I need to do so I can get to heaven when I die?) pictures. Our life is a test, an opportunity to love God even though we can’t clearly see Him. This is how our love for Him is tested. Will we be so committed to Him that, even though we don’t see Him clearly, we will love Him more than anything else? The challenge that Jesus leaves us in this Gospel reading is to always be ready, to always have faith that He is in control. He will give us what we need when we need it, no matter how bad life gets – let us have the grace to never forget to ask Him for His blessings.

Reading 1 Ex 17:8-13
In those days, Amalek came and waged war against Israel. Moses, therefore, said to Joshua, "Pick out certain men, and tomorrow go out and engage Amalek in battle. I will be standing on top of the hill with the staff of God in my hand." So Joshua did as Moses told him: he engaged Amalek in battle after Moses had climbed to the top of the hill with Aaron and Hur. As long as Moses kept his hands raised up, Israel had the better of the fight, but when he let his hands rest, Amalek had the better of the fight. Moses’hands, however, grew tired;
so they put a rock in place for him to sit on. Meanwhile Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other, so that his hands remained steady till sunset. And Joshua mowed down Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.
Reading 2 2 Timothy 3:14-4:2

Beloved: Remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred Scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction,
and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work. I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead,
and by his appearing and his kingly power: proclaim the word; be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient; convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.
Gospel Luke 18:1-8

Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary. He said, "There was a judge in a certain town who neither feared God nor respected any human being. And a widow in that town used to come to him and say, 'Render a just decision for me against my adversary.'
For a long time the judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, 'While it is true that I neither fear God nor respect any human being, because this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her
lest she finally come and strike me.'" The Lord said, "Pay attention to what the dishonest judge says. Will not God then secure the rights of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer them? I tell you, he will see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"
Discussion Questions

1. Describe the persistence of the widow in as much detail as possible. What do you think the judge was thinking about her, and why would her pressure have made him give in to her demands? Why would he even care about her enough to take her pressure seriously?

2. Was Jesus wrong or lying when, at the end of the Gospel, He used the word ‘speedily’? Doesn’t it seem, at times, like God answers our prayers and requests too slowly? Give an example from your life when you thought God acted too slowly? What do you think Jesus meant by using the word ‘speedily’?

3. What’s your common reaction when the going gets tough? Do you dig your heals in for the long haul, or do you leave the situation and do something else? Describe a situation that shows this? In the future, how can you be more steadfast with God?